The Search for Leadership and Governance Continues as Congress Shuts Down Government Again Without a DACA Fix

The Search for Leadership and Governance Continues as Congress Shuts Down Government Again Without a DACA Fix, Says Immigrant Legal Resource Center

Tonight, Congress triggered a shutdown of the federal government. They did not address protections needed for the nearly million immigrant youth who are part of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, rescinded by President Trump in September 2017.

Said Sameera Hafiz, senior policy strategist with the Immigrant Legal Resource Center (ILRC): “In shutting down the government without reaching a deal to honor the commitment that the government made to DACA recipients, Congress has prolonged the unacceptable limbo faced by nearly a million young immigrants. Far too many young people continue to fear they may be arrested, separated from their families and deported, because of President Trump’s reckless and heartless decision to end DACA.

“Every day that goes by without Congress fulfilling the promises that our representatives have made over and over, more than one hundred people find themselves at risk of deportation. This manufactured crisis, engineered by the Trump Administration in a cynical effort to trap more immigrants in the enforcement, detention and deportation cycle, can only be ended by a Congress that together recognizes that incendiary rhetoric and dangerous proposals have gone too far and must be replaced with a permanent solution.

“Elected officials of all political parties must denounce the appalling fear-mongering that the Trump Administration is using to smear immigrants in our country. These baseless claims, used in a cowardly political effort to make his xenophobic proposals more palatable to a country that increasingly rejects them, have to stop. We cannot submit to the President Trump’s hateful views about who belongs in this country and who does not. Congress must act now and pass the bipartisan Dream Act--that does not include trade-offs for further border militarization, attacks on family sponsorships, and the criminalization of immigrants and people of color.”

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The Immigrant Legal Resource Center (ILRC) is a national nonprofit that works with immigrants, community organizations, legal professionals, and policymakers to build a democratic society that values diversity and the rights of all people. Through community education programs, legal training & technical assistance, and policy development & advocacy, the ILRC’s mission is to protect and defend the fundamental rights of immigrant families and communities. www.ilrc.org